Travelin' Soldier
by Sunlit Wings
Summary: It's a few years past Hogwarts. The wizarding world is warring with the Dark Lord. Draco and Ginny just got to know one another better. The remaining wizards have been ordered to battle the last fight - including Draco. Will they cope being seperated? DG


Disclaimer: You. Know. The. Law. I don't even own the song either! Nor the characters and other JK Rowling stuff.

A/N: This is sort of a song-fic. I wrote it from inspiration from a personal dream I had one day. I just couldn't get the song (Travelin' Soldier) out of my head, so it followed me into the less reality world and occupied it until I wrote all the motivation down into this sort-of-song-fic. This is really D/G and maybe some other couples ... I'm not exactly sure because I'm writing this note before the story. Bad idea, right? Yesh, I agree too.

**Travelin' Soldier **

**I cried  
Never gonna hold the hand of another guy  
"Too young for him," they told her  
Waitin' for the love of a travelin' soldier**

-Travelin' Soldier by Dixie Chicks-

It was already at the brink of destruction. Hell unleashed its full authority ever since the rise of Voldemort. It felt as if the big World Wars have come back in full extent to destroy the earth and all the humanly or inhumanly creatures residing on the once, peaceful planet. They say that the true apocalypse in certainty came out to set free the terror that was planned from the beginning. Wizards, animals, and even muggles have indeed predicted the reality.

Grey skies covered the world, so you could see neither daybreak nor daylight. The weather played in perfect unison with the chaos surrounding the current events. The muggles were hiding, most of them missing because the death eaters took over their territory and received full capability to stick out in their mortal world. Now the muggles know everything. Down to the last dirty detail. While both peoples – wizards and muggles – hide, they now hide together or hide independently. Other creatures were nowhere to be seen. They fight with the evil or take no side at all. Pity. This is why human relations were never good with non-human beings. Both wanted power, resulting in an endless tug-a-war. That was beside the point.

Harry Potter was said to have a final showdown. Face to face with Voldemort. Maybe even at the school that everyone went to, once known as Hogwarts. Dumbledore was dead ... probably the only man holding Voldemort back from wreaking mayhem. He seems to have no troubles with Harry, thinking overconfidently that he will at last defeat The Boy Who Lived and take reign over the whole planet.

Down in Hogwarts, it was no longer a school any longer. It became a hideout and infirmary to those fighting or help coping in the war. The country was deserted and most had fled to the safe grounds of the once, functioning school. In order to hide the location, Ginny Weasley volunteered to be the Secret-Keeper of Hogwarts. She was highly trusted and everyone else was so busy with the war, they couldn't risk having a different person in this position. Of course, she protected and lived inside the castle herself. No one would've expected the youngest and most vulnerable of the Weasleys to be the Secret-Keeper. That was why she was perfect for the job. At least it gave her a crucial role in the Magical War.

Everyone had long graduated from Hogwarts. Well, everyone from Harry Potter's schooling era. All this havoc had started about a few years after his graduation and Auror training, which went moderately successful; Harry nearly failed during the first few attempts. People were bustling around in Hogwarts as if work had to be done, even ministry workers acted as if they were still back at the ministry. Since the start of the war, the Ministry of Magic was plagued by the growing amounts of Death Eaters and various Dark Lord supporters.

Ginny was occupied, helping Madame Pomfrey and other Healers treat the injured. Most of the wing was filled with patients in aid so they had to extend the room and conjure up more beds and open another wing. Regardless of her fatigue from working non-stop the whole afternoon, she finally let a fellow healer take her place so she could have a break. She let her sigh fall out and noisily dropped some medical supplies onto the nearest counter. Ginny stretched two arms, which were mildly arthritic and continued down the overflowing corridors, heading for the Kitchens.

When she finally got to the painting of the fruit bowl and tickled the pear, she entered. Ginny had predicted that her mother would be down there, helping the elves. Ever since Dumbledore fell, they've been stirred with heaps of excitement and fright. Only the presence of a wizard or witch would help them muddle through the feeling of insecurity and they would manage themselves back into the habitual orderly manner. Ginny spotted her mum waving her wand around and conjuring assorted housecleaning spells. The automatically controlled cleaning tools in midair were magically scrubbing down the tables, pots, cutlery, and stoves. Molly Weasley ordered the elves to cook, while she would handle the tidiness of the kitchen and its items.

"Hey, mum ... I just took a break from aiding the wounded," Ginny greeted and smiled tiredly. "What've you been up to?"

"Oh, my dear!" Mrs. Weasley shouted and went over to guide her weary daughter to the nearest chair. "Ginny, sit down! You've been working yourself too much, lately. Being the Secret-Keeper is already big enough of a job, but do you really have to tire yourself out like this?"

Ginny only smiled wryly at her worried mother. "They don't have enough Healers because the fighters just keep coming back, injured and all! I volunteered to make their job easier ..." Ginny replied and yawned.

"Why don't you leave this to someone else? Maybe Hermione?" Mrs. Weasley suggested smartly.

"Fighting by Harry and Ron's side. And as I've said, they don't have enough Healers so I was just doing the right thing! Don't worry, mum. Helping others not to die can't exactly kill me." Ginny replied with a small laugh.

Mrs. Weasley only returned a warm glance and sighed. "Alright ... you rest here, while I get you some tea." The not-so-round-woman-anymore hurried to a stove and put a kettle of water on boil. Her frizzled red hair was bushier then ever, trying to stay tucked into a yellow kerchief. Mrs. Weasley stayed the usual sweet motherly type, but due to the war, a little bit of everyone's personality grew slightly darker.

"It's ok, mum ... I want to sit in the Great Hall, so I'll just summon it from there." Ginny said, while getting up. Her mother stared back at her and nodded, heaving another great sigh.

Ginny pecked her mother on the cheek, goodbye, and shrugged off her cloak, revealing black flares and a black tank top, with wide straps. Ginny didn't look like the gangly student at Hogwarts anymore – she had a fuller, slimmer body, not inherited from her mother's plumpness. She hung her long blue cloak beside her mum's ruby red one onto the lined pegs in the stone wall. Ginny then left through the back of the painting and walked casually towards the Great Hall. Reaching the hall, she took notice of the few people in there eating and trying to replenish their appetite. Not many people really did have an appetite these days. She took a seat and leaned back against the ledge, crossing her legs and having her elbows on the table for support. Ginny felt similar to a sloth and she let her eyelids drop shut for a moment. _It's really a war ..._Ginny thought unconsciously to herself, not noticing someone sitting near her.

**Two days past eighteen**

**  
He was waiting for the bus in his army greens**

**  
Sat down in a booth in a cafe there**

**  
Gave his order to a girl with a bow in her hair**

An arrogant voice snorted. "No service? How am I supposed to improve my health here?" he asked snootily. "You there!"

Ginny opened her eyelids in a rapid second and turned around to glare at the older man. "Malfoy ..." Ginny snarled with a smirk. "For your information, this isn't a catered party."

"Well! This is the thanks I get for battling out there every single day, for you people?! I'm knocked for six ..." Draco snapped disbelievingly.

Ginny couldn't help, but roll her eyes. She quite reasonably felt a little sympathetic for the little bugger. Not so much though. Probably because he was still the same old, stuck-up ferret. Although she had to admit very _discreetly _to herself that Malfoy grew into a very gorgeous young man. The story was that, Draco's parents were really just used for Voldemort's self-interested mysteries. The Dark Lord had turned on them one night and killed them both for kicks. Draco swore that he would avenge his parents' death and turned to the good side, _just _so he could get even. He was very useful, considering that he was risking himself as a spy for their army and keeping them up to date with Voldemort's tactics.

Ginny got up and strode slowly to Draco. She sighed and looked at him in a bored fashion. She was getting somnolent from the same immature attitude he used all the time. "What do you want," Ginny demanded, meekly annoyed. She fixed both her arms, hands down, straight on the table.

"A nice strong cup of coffee, and lighten on the sugar!" Draco barked, while nonchalantly leaning back and looking at his nails. Ginny started muttering darkly and waved her wand at the table. Immediately, two cups of coffee appeared and she shoved one saucer and mug roughly into Draco's hands, all the while still muttering. For a brief moment, both their hands gently brushed each other, but it was vaguely noticed.

"What's that?" Draco began in an obnoxious tone.

"Nothing ... you big annoying prat ..." Ginny mumbled the last part and took her coffee and sat down, drinking it bit by bit.

"So ..." Draco drawled, creating small talk and teasing Ginny at the same time, "what has the little female weasel been up to?"

"None of your business, Malfoy," Ginny answered between clipped tones.

Draco ran a hand through his soft blond hair and groaned. "Look ..." he started lamely, "I'm – I'm sorry for being such a jerk to you all these years."

Ginny stopped short and gawked at Draco, almost spitting out the little amount of coffee in her mouth. She quickly swallowed and raised her eyebrows before saying, "What?" in a stunned voice.

Draco rolled his eyes. "I know it's quite late to make amends with you, but let's face it. We're adults, and we can continue acting like immature little toddlers, or we can continue acting like mature little toddlers," Draco said earnestly before grinning mischievously.

"I'm not an _immature toddler_!" Ginny began hotly.

Draco put up his hands in amused resignation. "OK. Whatever you are, I just can't stress enough how we have to grow up already!" He smirked as Ginny snorted indignantly and commenced drinking her coffee again. Seeing that the topic was going nowhere, Draco stayed silent.

**He's a little shy so she gives him a smile**

**  
And he said would you mind sittin' down for a while**

**  
And talking to me,**

**  
I'm feeling a little low**

**  
She said I'm off in an hour and I know where we can go**

On the other hand, Ginny had a thousand thoughts racing in her mind. Was Malfoy being civil to her? If so, why? She felt as if she had a sudden attraction for his oblivious charm. _Snap out of it, Ginny!_ She fiercely repeated to herself. Her hair felt like it was going to go on fire. Ginny flushed a deep crimson. _Oh no ... I'm speechless,_ a frantic thought that entered her view, almost at once.

Ginny shuffled out of her seat and brandished her wand at the coffee cup to make it disappear. "I h-have to g-go ..." she stuttered and gradually walked away in a nervous behavior.

"Why? Where are you going?" Draco insisted with his eyebrows scrunched together.

"Infirmary," Ginny said briskly, without turning around.

"When will I get to see you again?"

Ginny nearly tripped and as she gathered herself properly, her mouth automatically said it for her. "I'll be at the lake in one hour." Thrown off again, she slapped a quick hand to her mouth and ran off, out of the Great Hall with a huge case of the shakes.

------------------------------

During that hour of assistance in the Hospital Wing, Madame Pomfrey was beginning to share her frustration with Ginny. Every time she asked for Ginny's help, the girl just ended up doing it all nervously and shakily. Thinking something was wrong; the nurse gave Ginny a check-up. She seemed to be in adequate health. It was when Ginny dropped a flask (containing an important substance that healed petrified people), that Madame Pomfrey had the last straw with her and her own tension span.

_CRASH! _

Another flask came falling to the hard, polished floors.

"Miss Weasley, if you cannot conduct yourself into a decent manner and concentrate, I suggest you go to a dormitory and get some rest. The other Healers can take over." Madame Pomfrey's words came out vigorously, in a peeved tone. "You've never done this before, but if you continue to help, I will find myself in a pile of broken flasks and untreated casualties."

"I'm awfully sorry! Can't I keep helping?!" Ginny pleaded desperately, almost knocking over a stack of bandages. "I swear, I won't break any more flasks and I promise to calm down and – and –"

"Now, Miss Weasley! Get a bit of rest and have some air!" Madame Pomfrey ordered in a tense voice. "Merlin knows how long you've been working here for the past few months ... your energy must be depleted ..."

"But –"

"– Now!"

------------------------------

Diffidently, Ginny walked down to the great double oak doors that led outside. She pulled one open and stepped outside. She crossed her arms as she looked at the gray, evening sky and the cool wind that swept over her, making her sleek, red hair blow with it. Madly, she treaded over by the edge of the lake. Her shiny black boots were kicking the pebbles near her, as if her feet were the ones to be raging. Vigilantly, she squatted down and picked up a few stones to throw at the lake, not caring if the giant octopus would reach it's slimy tentacles at her and drown her into the depths of the mysterious water in front of her. Not caring if _he_ would show up, anyway. She'd guessed that he was playing around with her in the Great Hall. Just why did she always have to feel the most fooled and useless? It wasn't fair!

_Plop! Plop! Plop!_

The water splashed around everywhere as the stone plunged in, like a missile being dropped from above. Every rock came into the water as hard is it could and the rippled became unbroken as they were being recreated from rock after rock of angry hurls from a distressed girl. Ginny propelled the final rock all the way behind her head, making her last shot, hardest. She could feel the adrenaline pulsing throughout her arm. Yes, this was going to be a very violent toss. Her front teeth bit the bottom of her lip and she was about to launch when something caught at her hand.

**So they went down and they sat on the pier**

**  
He said I bet you got a boyfriend but I don't care**

"What the hell?" Ginny shouted in a chagrined tone, with a matching face. She looked back and glowered at her culprit. Only when she realized who it was, did her fierce stare start to fade.

Draco's hand was tightly holding her wrist and he grinned before saying, "You almost knocked me out with that rock, when you were going to catapult it."

Ginny felt a smile curl on her lips as Draco let go of her. "Ah, shut up you git," she sardonically remarked.

Slowly, both Ginny and Draco lowered onto the sand, not afraid of getting sediments onto their clothing. They sat, watching the placid lake and the reflected gray skies. It was a still and depressing sight where a lot of the plants were dead, and wilting over and stone monuments chipped or broken.

"What did you want?" Ginny asked rather frankly.

"Is it a crime to associate and sit near a pretty girl?" Draco said, a little too confidently.

"Don't flatter me," Ginny scoffed.

"Actually ... I wasn't. I just overrated the comment," Draco explained amusedly.

Ginny threw a dark glare, before smiling in a satisfied way. It was actually kind of fun being around him. "At least weasels don't bounce like nasty little ferrets," Ginny retorted with hilarity. Draco only smirked back. He differed from the boy back then, who had made cruel entertainment of her Valentine poem six years in the past.

"Why?" Ginny strained out a moment later, in order to get an answer to a question that was asked over and over again in her thoughts, while they were near each other.

"Because ... I've just realized the path of my life and how my loyalties should have never been on the sinful region. By means, following the Dark Lord," Draco managed to tell her with a distant look.

"Oh, I'm really sorry about You-know-who and your parents ..." Ginny whispered reluctantly. She wasn't that sorry for his folks, but she confidently tried to understand his insight of the incident, even if his parents were really evil to her family.

"Don't be. They were the ones who walked into the deathtrap," Draco said indifferently, as if he wasn't affected from the situation. "I was just born to fix their mistakes after they've made them. I wasn't exactly fond of them anyway."

"That's – er – good to hear, I guess. Especially from you ..." Ginny uncertainly said. "But ... if they weren't murdered, would you still have come to our side?" She had asked the last question a little more coldly.

For a minute, Draco looked dark as he contemplated. The subject was just getting darker within the conversation. He looked bravely out at the lake and confidently answered Ginny. "Maybe not as boldly, but yes because I've always despised Voldemort. I had this gut feeling that he'd do something my family one of these days ..."

Ginny could only flinch and shiver in distaste at the Dark Lord's name. She was still afraid of it, even though there was no time for this useless act. _Useless _... speaking of useless, she thought of how pathetic she was at the moment.

"Cold?" Draco asked, ready to take off his cloak for Ginny.

"Nah." Ginny declined his offer with a free hand. "But I'll accept any cure to the _uselessness_ syndrome."

"Huh?"

"Never mind. I'm just feeling a little low. I just don't want to be seen as the frightened, shy, and littlest Weasley girl anymore. I'm as strong as any other guy and I've faced off things that others have not even experienced!" Ginny angrily gritted out in a tough voice. "I mean, sure I was persuaded and controlled by Tom Riddle! But this is why I think I should fight. I have a good reason and I have a bone to pick with You-know-who."

Draco looked at Ginny a tad gravely. "You're not ready. I mean, you still fear his name, which is the first step to overcome. Also, being affected by him can make you in a weak position if he could approach you carefully to possess you again." Draco bluntly explained. "Fighting isn't just revenge against an enemy."

"See!" Ginny bawled in exasperation. "That's so ironic coming from you. When will it be my time to _fly_? I want to be free from those chains holding me back ... those chains that make my decisions for me."

"Any moment ... when you feel that you've accomplished and changed the fate of something, let alone yours," Draco told her wisely.

Ginny smiled gently at him for the first time. "Thanks. Just when I needed to hear something similar to that, you're the one to go and say it to me."

It wasn't so hard earning the trust of a certain Ginny Weasley. And this night proved that, as Ginny let some of her barriers loose, and it was hard to do that for someone else. She even lied to herself. It was a wonder that she let her walls down, particularly if the person was a Malfoy, the family that she had most been abhorrent of, ever since at a young age.

"Really ... why do you decide to come out of that dark corner now? Why haven't you done it years ago?" Ginny asked in an extremely curious manner.

Her questions really perplexed him in a way. He glanced away from her, thinking distantly about something else. "Carpe Diem. To seize the day," Draco finally replied to her. He smiled somewhat awkwardly. A _real _smile this time, not just one of his usual cocky smirks. Draco then took one of her smooth, pale hands and brushed his lips against the back of it. Something inside of Ginny didn't let her pull away. A million butterflies occupied her stomach. His chivalrous grace was just irresistible.

"I'll be leaving within the time span of a few days. Potter has ordered all of us to move out into line of attack soon." Draco openly told Ginny, who was back to hugging her knees and looking void.

"Why?" she asked, a little dumbfounded as Draco stood up to leave for the night.

"You should ask your boyfriend," Draco said thoughtfully, and with one last grin, he left her in a still astonished position. He warily shrugged and paced back to Hogwarts.

Ginny was mighty surprised as she unfolded her legs in front of her and thought about what he had just said. She quickly got up and yelled in the direction that Draco had headed. "I don't have a boyfriend ..." She echoed uselessly, volume dropping on the last word when she became aware that he wasn't even outside anymore.

------------------------------

Late that night, Ginny had somehow found her way back into the Gryffindor common room. It was amazing where you could get when you never pay attention to your surroundings. She sat down heavily on one of the red couches and didn't take note of a bespectacled male sitting across from her and staring attentively.

"Where were you?" Harry asked out of the sound of crackling from the merry fireplace. He put down his book and gave Ginny a stern look. Luckily, no one was a bystander to this since Ginny had returned at the time where basically, any normal person was to start sleeping at.

"That's none of your business," Ginny said to him with a very straight poker face, looking hard to detect.

"Come on, Gins! You can tell me anything," Harry reassured and got up to sit beside her. He wore an old red jumper that fit him very nicely, outlining his strong figure. Ginny noticed that his scent – grass and musky-scented soap – had never changed over the years she's been a friend with him.

Ginny just half-grinned at him. She never fully liked the thought of Harry treating her as though she was his little sister. She already had enough of that from Ron! "Really ... M-Y-O-B. I wasn't exactly doing anything!" Ginny explained nonchalantly.

"Right. I'll take your word for it," Harry said sarcastically, before turning a little more solemn and fading his smile. "I've ordered the crew to set out in a few days. So ... if you have anything to tell me, you can do it now."

Ginny widened her eyes as she remembered something. She took the liberty to ignore Harry's last remark and ask him something different. "Yeah ... I wanted to know why you decided to order the whole team out and fight. Why are you going to sacrifice the whole group in just one go?" Ginny confronted anxiously, wanting to know the reply. She was also half furious with Harry. It would be his entire fault if she never got to see her family and friends again.

Harry had hoped this question wouldn't turn up. But if it did, he'd have to answer truthfully. Giving an enormous sigh, he messed with his hair and stared strictly into her eyes. "Voldemort thinks that he's done with conquering the whole of the United Kingdom. According to one of our spies, he's going to meticulously start harassing the other nations and countries surrounding us. We've planned it all out, precisely the way we're going to go into attack. If our plan is successful, we'll be able to stop him before he takes all of Asia."

Ginny had her mouth open in shock and disbelief. _Other_ nations? That means it would be mandatory for them to leave and stop the Dark Lord before he prevails.

Seeing the horrified look on Ginny's face, Harry added something, "Of course, we'll have allies from the other countries. The different Ministries will help us too and they'll have hideouts for us. But I'm afraid that at this rate, the whole strategy might take about a whole year to fulfill." Harry heaved another audible sigh. This was going to probably be his last chance to talk to her before he left. "I've been meaning to tell you something all these years. I know it's probably too late but, Ginny, this is so important to me and possibly, even you." Harry held her hands.

The anxiety in Ginny was flowing out like crazy. She knew what Harry was going to say. She'd known for years that this day would come. But the point is, it was too late. Sure, finally her love for the spectacle-wearing vanquisher of great evil is at last returned. It was just that, this time, Ginny wasn't going to rejoice. She wasn't even in love with him. That was a long time ago and this was now. In the past, the schooling Ginny had decided to give up on Harry after she started dating other boys to get her mind off of him. Now was definitely a bad time. Too late, to be exact.

"I –" Harry began but was cut off.

"Don't!" Ginny screamed, clapping both her hands onto her ears, "I don't want to hear those words! Not now, not _ever_."

Suddenly, her words were muffled from the soft lips that had placed themselves over Ginny's pink ones. Harry was trying to _snog_ her?! She didn't have time to kiss back, but she sure did shove him hard on the chest. "Dammit! What the hell are you playing at, Harry?" Ginny hissed crossly.

"I –" Harry almost yelled before being interrupted again.

"Don't! Don't, don't, don't!" Ginny shouted back and got up to go up to her dormitory, "I'm going to bed, whether you like it or not. Leave me alone!" Ginny, instead of enraged, sounded as if she was going to be emotionally wounded. That night wasn't a night to sleep comfortably into.

Harry mistook her outburst as a plea to not have her emotionally impaired. He gave a semi smile. _So she's afraid to be loved by me because I might die and put her in misery_, Harry thought to himself as he sat back down and continued reading his book.

------------------------------

The evening before all the fighters had to leave. Ginny spent it with Draco by the lake exactly like a few days ago. She was just so intrigued by him because his charm was just too alluring. Ginny felt herself getting to know him better every minute they'd spend. Draco and she were not too different from each other. Both were misfits and misunderstood most of the time. This resemblance brought them together. Ginny had also been avoiding Harry, who was almost – if not – obsessed with her as she caught him eyeing her and staring at her every time they get a chance to pass by. She was starting to get freaked out.

Ginny was seated beside Draco, looking out at the frigid lake and smiling to herself. "You know a few nights ago ... you told me to ask my boyfriend?" Ginny asked out of the blue. Draco nodded and let her continue.

"Just so you'll know ... I didn't have a boyfriend," Ginny finished, awaiting his reply.

"Whoa! Hold it," Draco began in amused disbelief. "Are you trying to make me hit on you?"

"Well ... that's a question for you to find the answer to," Ginny told him wistfully and grinned from ear to ear.

"Are you trying to seduce me?" Draco asked in a mirthful manner, smirking at the same time.

"I don't know. Am I?" Ginny answered with her eyebrows raised interestedly. For a moment they just stared at each other with the same swaggering grins before bursting into laughter. Ginny had to hold onto her stomach to contain herself.

"Damn, I haven't laughed this much in days ..."

"Me, as well,"

Draco then took Ginny by the shoulder, critically signing her as if he had something important to say. "While I'm gone, can you vow to do _one _thing for me?" Ginny nodded.

**I got no one to send a letter to.**

**  
Would you mind if I sent one back here to you?**

"What is it?" She asked timidly.

"Keep in contact with me?" Draco implored apprehensively.

Ginny sighed in relief. She thought it was going to be something much worse. "Of course I will! Why'd you ask?" She insisted peculiarly.

"I'm just guessing that while I'm gone on this long mission, the only thing that will keep me civil – even sane – is something I'll acknowledge, other than the war. This is especially because I'm one of Potter's spies. And it's also because ... everyone else will have friends and loved ones to owl to," Draco stated very gloomily. Ginny couldn't help but feel remorseful for him. She was going to owl him in the first place, but his little speech made her want to do it more. "So ... I want to look forward to something during my mission. Even if it's only an owl, it's the most I could hope for."

"Don't worry ... I promise you as many owls as I can reply to, to get through to you during this crisis, Malfoy," Ginny reassured with a small beam.

"You better, Weasley," Draco replied light-heartedly.

Both Ginny and Draco took the opening to look into each other's eyes in a longing mood. Ginny closed her eyes and embraced Draco for a moment, like they were best friends forever – or maybe more than just best friends. Draco pulled back and gently brushed his lips against hers. Ginny didn't mind at all and seemed to have kissed him back. As it turned into a deeper kiss, Ginny had to put an end to it, not wanting to ruin the relationship she already had with him. She forced herself off the ground, stood up and lightly touched Draco's cheek.

"I'll miss you, a great deal, when you leave, Draco," Ginny whispered in a slightly hoarse voice.

"I will too ... Ginny," Draco replied, still sitting on the ground.

They didn't notice, but that was the very first time that they had used each other's first name. Draco massaged his face and neck as he watched Ginny retreat back to the castle. It was definitely a night to remember.

------------------------------

Early that morning, hundreds of wizards were on the outside grounds of Hogwarts. They were going to set off on their brooms for their first destination. Ginny was stalking through the large crowds of wizards and witches, looking for a specific crowd. When she spotted amounts of red hair mixed with other assorted colors, she scurried through the people and got to her brothers and friends.

"Ron, Fred, George, Bill, Charlie, Dad!" Ginny called out, "Hermione! Tonks! You guys!" The group turned around to face her, their faces grim and set for battle.

Ron was first to hug her. "If anyone messes with you – tell them that I'll be back to kick their ass!" Ron said steadfastly into her ears. "I won't die on you. I promise – and even if I can't promise it – I will come back to protect my little sister if it even means haunting others." Ginny giggled a little, but nodded seriously after.

Ginny hugged the rest of them for good luck – maybe even goodbye – and when she got to Harry, he had pulled her into the embrace. He didn't know that Ginny was pulling on a void look again and went rigid when she was under Harry's touch. Over his shoulder, she saw that Draco had been watching. Doing nothing, she just kept on staring at the mysterious blond.

"I don't love you ..." Ginny finally gritted out silently, into Harry's ear.

Harry let go and eyed her firmly. "I know," he whispered back. He then motioned for everyone to mount his or her brooms. Before they did, wands were seen flicking at the owners, spelling them with a charm that camouflaged you into the scenery, like a chameleon. It was a quick order and everyone did it in unison. Rapidly, the brooms were hovering high in the air and they shot off over the forest tops and out of Hogwarts' sight. Ginny couldn't believe this was already happening so fast. She sadly watched all her friends and family go, the brim of her eyes sparkling with tears.

------------------------------

The next few weeks were nothing but boredom in the empty school of Hogwarts. More than half had left to go fight, and there wasn't much to do except wait and see the outcome of the battle. She received a few owls from some of her friends. Good news, bad news, just whatever about happenings in the war didn't exactly matter to her. No one she had known seemed to die. No owls from Draco yet. Only during one particular night, did she receive a short message, elegantly written in neat handwriting. Finally, the letter she had been awaiting.

**So the letters came from an army camp**

**  
In California then Vietnam**

**  
And he told her of his heart**

**  
It might be love and all of the things he was so scared of**

_Dear Ginny,_

_I bet you're out of your mind in that rotting castle, wishing you could've been here with us, right? Wrong. The attacks are getting more frequent and I'm getting no sleep at all. At least you get a comfy four-poster with its feather mattress and plush sheets and pillows! _

_To be honest, every time I go spy for Scar-head, it seems like he wants me to stay there and decay in hell. Voldemort is getting much more demanding each day, thinking I'm his spy, when actually, I'm Potter's spy. I have to feed some actual information to make it seem real, before I make up a load of crap to throw them off. By the way, during our stay in Romania, a big tree seemed to have fallen onto Potter. His face was all flat and squished like those muggle-fast-food-burgers. You should've seen the look on his face! An ugly tree literally fell on him! _

_It's getting very threatening here. Especially ever since your brother caught me sending letters to you. I told him that I was proposing a marriage to you ...and now my shin really hurts. Reply soon!_

_Draco Malfoy_

Ginny snorted in laughter as she finished the letter. It was very refreshing to hear from him, considering that it plainly was boring as hell in the castle. She sat at a desk in her dormitory and hastily brought out a quill and some parchment. She dipped it into some ink and quickly filled out the sheet in front of her.

_Hey, Draco_

_YES. It is rather dull here. I'm also afraid that you've already gone too far to reach; by the time I finish this letter. Things have been going well lately ... nothing to do, walls to stare at. I just know that it's going to be quite a thrilling year. _

_I'm getting too much sleep, that is. I'm wishing something exciting to happen for me, but I know it's going to be a same old boring week, for the rest of the year. I've already explored the whole castle, played around in Dumbledore's old office, played pranks on others and possibly everything else you could possibly do here. The worst thing is, my mum won't let me out to go shopping! I think I could survive on my own and actually find a decent grocery store to lurk in. Maybe grab some clothes left in those deserted shopping centres in the muggle realm. I mean, they're just lying there, ready to be stolen and if they have to be stolen, who else to do it but me? I actually need the clothes! _

_Oh, don't pay any attention to Harry! Just keep your head and do what you're supposed to do. You should know better than anyone else! And do be careful ... You-Know-Who just might turn his back on you. Send a get-well to Harry for me! I hope his face returns to normal ..._

_Are you scared that it's getting darker there? I hope you have the country under control from chaos. Ron is also being a jackass! Tell him that if he messes with you again, he'll be waiting for a bunch of spiders all over his things when he comes back. _

_And write TONNES more! I need something to look forward to, too. So I guess the daily owls are beneficial to both of us. If you don't write at least a page long of stuff ... I will jinx your quill and order my owl to peck endlessly at your fingers until you actually do it. I MEAN IT. _

_Ciao,_

_Ginny Weasley_

Towards the end of the year it was exactly similar to how it started out. There weren't any injured people for the Hospital Wing anymore and the children were always running off so Ginny couldn't catch them to play with them. It had been sort of miserable and only the owls from Draco and her other friends brightened her day.

**He said when it's getting kinda rough over here,**

**  
I think of that day sittin' down at the pier**

**  
And I close my eyes and see your pretty smile**

**  
Don't worry but I won't be able to write for a while**

Soon, the post started coming in slower as Ginny and Draco tried writing more to each other. He had even explained hastily that things had gotten in the way so he had to postpone replying some of the owls. Ginny was impatient and livid at how unavailable her friends – especially Draco – became. But then, he'd say sweet things such as, when he was in a tight spot and the war was getting rougher, he'd think about those days down by the lake, when they got to understand each other better. Ginny felt as if she was going to fall for him. It was just one rainy day that she found out, when she was scribbling obliviously on a small piece parchment.

_I have fallen in love with you, Draco Malfoy._

Ginny blindly wrote and saw it. Wondering if it was a conspiracy, that she did it to convince herself, she slowly proved that she could actually feel herself falling for the traveling soldier. When she got the courage, she bravely put the small parchment in with the daily letter. Only, when she received the response, only her letter was answered. Little by little, she kept confessing each letter and later found that Draco was avoiding her confessions. Ginny had to confront him somehow.

Dipping the quill into the ink, she wrote heatedly and energetically onto the small parchment. She was only going to send a paragraph with her complaint, seeing if Draco actually dared to ignore her and change the subject.

_Draco,_

_I know you've been ignoring my confessions, but I'll just keep confessing until you'd acknowledge me somehow! Stop avoiding it and please answer me! I am begging you ... I don't want to have unrequited love! It hurts more that you've ignored me instead of rejected me. Did you find someone during the war? If so ... why didn't you tell me in the first place? Please respond to me ... please. _

_Sadly yours,_

_Ginny Weasley_

A few tears had shone themselves on Ginny's face as she finished up the letter and sent it off, attached to the impatient brown owl, which was now flying off in the distant; a miniscule dot in the sky, until it was no longer to be seen. The reply would probably change her life forever, and Ginny wasn't sure if she was ready for that.

------------------------------

The reply did come back, indeed. Ginny excitedly pulled open the parchment roll and read the letter. She dropped onto her bed and pulled a hurt look on her face. The response from Draco was not as she had expected it to be.

_Ginny,_

_I'm very fond of you as a friend and I can't make this relationship happen. I'm very sorry ... but it will be even more heartbreaking because I'm in the middle of a war. Ginny, I can't love you back right now. It will only make you miserable. Just try to understand that I don't want to end up hurting you so badly. It is for your own good. _

_Sincerely,_

_ Draco Malfoy_

Ginny dropped her face onto her pillow and fully let her tears run down. Her hand felt insensitive to the letter and dropped it to the wooden floor, by the bed. Ginny's chest was heaving up and down, as she hyperventilated from sobbing intensely into the pillow. She punched and kicked around and made more distressed noises. Depressing herself even more, she started thinking about the other owls sent to her by friends and family – they were going to be left unanswered.

The next few weeks, she spent locked up in the dormitory, unable to eat and sleep. She only got up occasionally to drink water or go to the lavatory, but she didn't take good care of herself. She was in a depressed state, an impacting voice feeling, therefore rendering her with identity crisis. She just curled up in her bed, pathetically, powerless to the piece of parchment left on the floor. Ginny dared not touch it. The memories would slowly kill her. She aggressively wondered so many things. Was their kiss by the lake, unmeaning? Why did Draco decide to get close to her? Why did he have to use her like this? Why did she ever fall for him? _They meant nothing ... our talks, letters, and the kiss. He is so cruel to allure me into the deathtrap he created for me. _Ginny darkly thought, narrowing her eyes at her hands.

It was practically the end of the year, when Ginny felt at least fine enough to come out of her room, she avoided the others residing in the castle and she just lurked around the corridors, trying to find her place in life. She looked starved and in critical poverty, being exceedingly disheveled in appearance. Ginny was confused, distressed, and in disarray. Nothing could help her now. She found herself into the Great Hall: the place where Draco was first civil to her. All the memories tortured her, piercing vivid images into her very soul. She would never be that trusting again. Never again, letting her barriers down. Never getting hurt anymore. She would never be happy again.

Suddenly, a voice rang through the Great Hall and all the corridors pf the school. Professor McGonagall called forth a meeting. A messenger had arrived at Hogwarts. Neville Longbottom brought vital news of the war.

**One Friday night at a football game**

**  
The Lord's Prayer said and the Anthem sang**

**  
A man said folks would you bow your heads**

**  
For a list of local Vietnam dead**

"It has ended! The war has ended! All the survivors will be heading back within the next few days," Neville shouted out for everyone, on top of a table at the front of the Great Hall. Each person celebrated with cheers of delight. He handed a small roll of parchment to Professor McGonagall. It was the death record, with all the names of the deceased and the total number of deaths. Ginny could care any less as she heard 'Harry Potter' and the first few other names. What made her stop breathing, for a moment, was the next name.

**And one name read and nobody really cared**

**  
But a pretty little girl with a bow in her hair**

"Draco Malfoy," Professor McGonagall read and proceeded on to the next names, where Ginny muffled out of her hearing. All that was echoing in her head was Draco's name being called from the list.

For the first time in several months, her thoughts stirred and woke up her mind. She silently contemplated if what Draco had been trying to make her understand, was his coming death. Discreetly, she staggered out of the Great Hall and into the corridors and hallways, hand against the walls for support, thinking deeply. Only one person followed, and it was the army's messenger, Neville Longbottom.

"Ginny?" He asked in-between worried tones.

She turned around to face him. Her dark expressions back on. Ginny had become thinner and paler than when he had last seen her. The most mysterious feature was her usual, bright brown eyes. Ginny currently had empty eyes that kept giving a creepy stare. She could barely talk, but managed to croak out in a very hoarse voice, "What?"

"Draco told me to deliver this to you ... that is, if he died." Neville said gravely, before handing her a battered, but expensively made envelope. It was a softer parchment, meant for invitations or special occasions. Ginny took the envelope without hesitance. It was addressed to her in his very elegant writing style.

"Are you going to be ok?" Neville asked before leaving back for the Great Hall.

Ginny only waved him away and continued to stare at the envelope. Something flashed back in her mind. It was the time when she got that rejection letter. Draco had written in it: _Ginny, I can't love you back **right now**. _

Ginny realized something she had never thought about. She gingerly got back to the letter and skillfully ripped it in half, before pocketing it. She giggled silently, and cried at the same time. Ginny hasn't the need to read it, after all. She knew what the letter was going to say after she received it, all along.

"All is forgiven, Draco ..." She whispered to herself before giggling maniacally. With that, she finally realized the fatigue in her and fainted.

**I cried**

**  
Never gonna hold the hand of another guy**

**  
Too young for him they told her**

**  
Waitin' for the love of a travelin' soldier**

**  
Our love will never end**

**  
Waitin' for the soldier to come back again**

**  
Never more to be alone when the letter said**

**  
A soldier's coming home**

A/N: Phew! I can't believe I finished this in a couple of nights. Anyway, I hope you like this one-shot ficlet that I wrote. I'll be satisfied if I gain any fans who review generously. If you have any personal questions or says, feel free to IM my user.  
Btw, if you didn't understand the statement: "... knocked for six" It means something like 'stunned' or 'shocked'.  
I'd like to personally thank my Beta reader, who is a girl I share some fanfiction accounts with.  
Lastly, thanks to all the reviewers and I accept academic criticism. But if you don't like the story, just don't bother reviewing and go read one of the other million stories on this site. Bye-bye!


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